1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a mailing envelope and, more particularly, to an envelope having side seam and closure flap profiles that improve performance during processing by automated mail handing equipment.
2. Description of the Related Art
Envelopes have long been used to transport a wide variety of items through the mail, including letters, documents, photographs, and the like. In this arrangement, certain items will be placed in the generally rectangularly-shaped envelope and the closure flap subsequently adhered to securely hold the items for shipment. In recent years, there has been a need to produce a mailing envelope that is ideally suited for sending correspondence to or from businesses that deal in high-volume mailing, such as credit card companies, or other billing or advertising companies. However, because of the expense of designing specialized envelopes and various postal regulations levying surcharges for using non-standard mail, envelope designs used on a mass-market basis are very standard.
A typical mailing envelope design consists of a number of flaps and panels that are folded and adhesively secured together. Often these designs take into consideration the integrity of the envelope and the various seams which are adhered together to form its shape. Despite being structurally sound, envelopes are often difficult for automated mail handling equipment to process. Business mailings often require such equipment to perform well in all three stages of the mailing process, including: (1) insertion of an item into an envelope for shipment; (2) within the mail stream while the envelope is being transported and properly routed to its destination; and (3) automated opening of the envelope to reveal its contents. Failure at any of these stages can cause excessive delays and costs for a mass-market mailing regime that relies on such mailing handling equipment to process thousands of envelopes, and items contained therein, in a short amount of time.
During the mechanical insertion process, an envelope is advanced along a conveyor system and one or more inserts is placed inside the envelope. The envelope can then be sealed and placed into the mail stream. Various equipment is used to advance the envelope in the mail stream, including conveyor systems similar to those used in the first stage of the process. In final stage, an envelope is remitted with a check or other papers enclosed. The envelope is again received in a conveyor system and positioned such that an automated opening device can cut away the top edge and side edges of the envelope to reveal the contents. In all three stages of the mail handling process, a number of different devices are used to advance and securely hold the envelopes in position, such as mechanical fingers and other known devices.
Standard envelopes used for business mailings employ a number of design features that can cause the envelope and inserts to jam or snag within the automated mail handling equipment. For example, a typical closure flap has fairly sharp shoulder sections that frequently produce mail handling problems. Because these shoulder sections—if parallel to the envelope side edges—are aligned fairly perpendicular to the direction of travel of the envelope along the conveyor, there is little room for error by feeding or advancing equipment that grasps the closure flap of the rapidly traveling envelope. Instead of allowing the mail handling equipment to gradually encounter the closure flap, the side edge of the closure flap is substantially fully presented so that misaligned envelopes essentially cannot be aligned by the equipment.
Another feature that introduces error into the automated system is an envelope having jagged transition points between the various flaps and panels of the rear surface that make up the “throat” of the envelope. When an inserting mechanism attempts to place an insert into the envelope, the interface of the side flap with the rear panel creates a ridge that can cause the insert to snag on the throat, interfering with the proper direction of travel of the insert. Additionally, vacuum suction devices used to lift the envelope rear surface to aid in placing the insert inside the envelope may fail to properly adhere to the rear surface when encountering a jagged transition point. Further, the traditional “throat” design for an envelope present a straight edge that becomes a perpendicular barrier to inserts. Instead of allowing the insert to contact the throat gradually, the traditional design forces the insert to contact the throat all at once, often causing the insert to jam and fail to maintain proper alignment for envelope insertion.
Envelope advancement along a conveyor or similar system is also impeded by traditional envelope configurations. For ease of manufacture, the side seam formed at the junction of the envelope rear and side panels are typically positioned immediately adjacent to the overall envelope side edge. However, this design can cause various envelope-grabbing apparatuses (e.g., mechanical fingers) to snag or catch on the seam as the envelope side edge is grasped for advancement. Under these circumstances, the integrity of the envelope is compromised. Further, such a design often forces an automated opening device to cut through an adhesive layer holding the rear panel and side flaps together, speeding the dulling and degradation of the opening device.
One type of envelope design that avoids some of the aforementioned problems is a diagonal cut envelope. This envelope design includes a pair of diagonal seams extending upwardly and inwardly from both lowermost corners of the rear panel of the envelope. Although this envelope addresses the concern with automated mail handling equipment, these envelopes present an uneven rear panel surface. This is undesirable because it is often necessary, especially in bulk mailings, to include printing or a window on the rear panel surface of the envelope. An uneven surface greatly complicates the application of printing or the inclusion of a window.
Thus, a need exists for a new envelope design having a panel and flap arrangement that minimizes problems at all stages of the automated mail handling process and presents a smooth rear panel surface. This design would provide the same overall outside dimensions as a standard business mailing envelope while being configured for ease of manufacture.